September 28, 2012

Jews and not Arabs as Palestinians

Jewish Brigade
Aliyah Magazine continues to cover the incredible story from the outbreak of WW2 until the establishment of the Jewish State of Israel.
This article confirms a most remarkable fact…the British regarded Jews living in Israel as Palestinians. Accordingly, one could strongly argue that ‘Palestinian Rights’ is a Jewish issue!

Read More:

http://aliyahmagazine.com/jewish-palestinians/

Five Basic Arguments Against a Palestinian State by Professor Paul Eidelberg

Contrary to the governments of the United States and Israel, various experts in both countries reject the “two-state” solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. I shall mention their views while developing five decisive arguments against a Palestinian state: Economic, Demographic, Political, Strategic, and Democratic. Let’s begin.


1. Economic Arguments
A RAND study indicates that a Palestinian state would not be economically viable. It would require $33 billion for the first ten years of its existence—and this study was made before the economic crisis now confronting the United States and the entire world.
Besides, to confine more than two million Arabs to the 2,323 square miles of the so-called West Bank, and to squeeze an-other million into the 141 square miles of Gaza, is to doom these Arabs to economic stagnation and discontent. The projected state would be a cauldron of envious hatred of Israel fueled by the leaders of one or another group of Arab clans or thugs parading under the banner of Allah.
Moreover, to compensate perhaps 300,000 Jews expelled from the “West Bank”—or even half that number—would bankrupt Israel’s government, to say nothing of the resulting trauma and civil discord.

2. Demographic Arguments

“Two-state” solution advocates warn that the Arabs between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean will soon outnumber the Jews, and that this necessitates a Palestinian state. The Sharon government, without public argumentation, used this demographic contention to justify its perfidious implementation of Labor’s policy of unilateral disengagement from Gaza in 2005. The Olmert-Livni government is using the same policy to withdraw from Judea and Samaria, including eastern Jerusalem.
However, a ground-breaking study by the American-Israel Demographic Research Group (www.aidrg.com) revealed in 2005 that Israel does not need to retreat from Judea and Samaria to secure Jewish demography. The study shows that the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics exaggerated the Arab population in Judea, Samaria, and Gaza by nearly 50%. Rather than 3.8 million Palestinians, it was no more than 2.4 million. Since those registered as Jews in Israel comprise almost 80% of Israel’s population, they make up a 59% majority with Gaza and Judea and Samaria, and a solid 67% majority with Judea and Samaria without Gaza!
The American and Israeli researchers also found that Jewish fertility rates are steadily increasing while Arab fertility rates are steadily decreasing. Not only is there no demographic time bomb necessitating the surrender of Judea and Samaria to Palestinian terrorists, but Israel’s demographic position should encourage its government to develop a strategy for annexing Judea and Samaria.

Read More:

http://www.khouse.org/articles/2009/826/

A Hitler Wannabe Visits New York

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad meets with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in New York.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad meets with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon in New York.
Photo Credit: IRNA
Autumn is here and with it the annual trip that makes Mahmoud Ahmadinejad positively giddy. The Iranian President gets to leave the country whose citizens he mowed down in the streets to seize power and travel to New York to show the Jews they have no power. Lecturing each year from the rostrum of the United Nations is Ahmadinejad’s equivalent of popping Viagra, a yearly demonstration of his own virility amid utter Jewish impotence.

For all Ahmadinejad’s protestations of a Zionist world conspiracy and how we Jews control everything, he is well aware of just how weak we Jews are and he loves to rub it in our faces. Like clockwork he is here in late September each year to call for the destruction of the Jewish State right smack in the heart of Jew York, a city that has more Jews in it than any other on earth. He accomplishes the unique feat of calling for a new holocaust while simultaneously denying the original ever took place. And do you know what the Jews do about it? Nothing.

OK, not quite. There is a protest or two featuring a few hundred brave souls with a megaphone and I plan to join them. But Jewish economic power cannot stop the perfidious Warwick hotel from hosting Ahmadinejad and his retinue. The billionaire Jewish mayor of New York cannot stop him from landing in his city and touring its landmarks. And the 2.5 million Jews of New York cannot stop his motorcade from moving about the city like he owns the place. How helpless must a people be to watch someone calling for their extermination in a city where they are so entrenched and numerous.

Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/columns/america-rabbi-shmuley-boteach/a-hitler-wannabe-visits-new-york/2012/09/24/0/?print

Ohio Jew Tossed Out of Sen. Brown Event for Asking about J Street Funding


Senator Sherrod Brown
Senator Sherrod Brown
Photo Credit: Campaign image
See an update at the end of this report.

In what originally was supposed to be a slam dunk, US Senator Sherrod Brown's race for reelection in Ohio against the youthful Republican Josh Mandell may instead be turning into a squeaker, and Brown is none too happy about it.

Brown originally had as much as a 17 percentage point lead, but according to a report in Bloomberg, several polls last month showed the race to be deadlocked.  Mandell claims the race has become intense because Ohioans are increasingly turned off by the "ultra-liberal, hyper-partisan" Brown, while Brown claims that millions of dollars in negative ads have been run against him by "outside, undisclosed interest groups."

One Ohioan found out just how testy this race has made Sherrod Brown. Following a talk he gave at the Dayton, Ohio Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, September 18, Senator Brown invited questions.  There were a few tough questions put to the Senator by business owners opposed to President Obama's healthcare legislation, and a softball question about how to contact the Senator's office.

And then 32-year old Ohio native Joel Griffith stood up.  Griffith said, "I'm a proud Jewish American and I'm concerned that the single biggest entity funding you is J Street.  J Street has given you $60,000, and as you know, J Street is funded by an attorney for the Saudi Embassy and has also been funded by the producer of one of the most anti-Semitic films ever made ..." but Griffith was not allowed to finish his question. The Senator's first response was that Griffith's was "clearly a political question."
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/ohio-jew-tossed-out-of-sen-brown-event-for-asking-about-j-street-funding/2012/09/22/0/?print

IDF Ready for Escalation in Judea in Samaria, says Central Command Head

Major General Nitzan Alon (center).
Major General Nitzan Alon (center).
Photo Credit: Noam Arnon/ Tazpit News Agency
Despite relative stability, the IDF is bracing for possible escalation of violence in Judea and Samaria, Commander of the IDF Central Command, Major General Nitzan Alon, said at a recent Rosh Hashannah ceremony attended by community leaders and mayors from Judea and Samaria.
The Central Command encompasses Judea and Samaria.
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/news/eye-on-palestine/idf-ready-for-escalation-in-judea-in-samaria-says-central-command-head/2012/09/23/0/?print

We Have A Lot To Learn From The Soviet Jewry Movement


Eisenstadt-092112
The greatest Jewish success story in a quarter century has become unknown to many in less than a generation.

On Dec. 6, 1987, when Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev arrived in Washington, more than a quarter-million American Jews – Democrats and Republicans, observant and secular, and individuals representing the entire spectrum of Israeli politics – gathered on the National Mall with a single unified message as old as the Exodus story: “Let our people go!”

“Our people” were the Jews of the Soviet Union who were being discriminated against, deprived of their freedom of expression and religion, and prevented from emigrating. After the Six-Day War, brave Soviet Jews began to risk their careers, loved ones and lives to protest the denial of these freedoms and to advocate for their basic right to immigrate to Israel.

Refuseniks – Soviet Jews who had been denied an exit visa – cried out for help from other Jews. Israeli and American Jewish activists responded, saying “Hineni – Here I am.”

The gathering on that cold December morning 25 years ago was the culminating event of a generation-long struggle by American Jews to win the freedom of their Soviet brethren. Commonly known as the Soviet Jewry movement, it was led by activists who came from every corner of the Jewish community. Their stories and impact continue to resonate with us as Jews and Americans.

The movement’s real engine was at the grass-roots level across America. In the mid-1960s, college students, housewives, dentists, rabbis and teachers orchestrated letter-writing campaigns, local rallies, b’nei mitzvah twinning programs and more. And they persisted in their activism on behalf of Soviet Jews for decades. American Jews from major cities traveled to the Soviet Union with books, messages of support and hidden religious articles.
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/we-have-a-lot-to-learn-from-the-soviet-jewry-movement/2012/09/21/0/?print

What If Israel’s ‘Peace Partners’ Actually Prefer War?

Beres-Louis-Rene
At this point in Israel’s problematic diplomatic agenda, there is really only one overriding policy question: Can any form of negotiation with the Palestinians, Fatah and/or Hamas, ever prove reasonable and productive?

From the very beginning, even before formal statehood in 1948, Israel has sought courageously and reasonably to negotiate with its many unreasonable enemies. Always, Jerusalem has preferred peace to war. Nonetheless, challenged by relentless and interminable Arab aggressions, diplomacy has usually failed Israel. Even the most visible example of an alleged diplomatic success, the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty of 1979, is apt to fail calamitously sometime in the post-Mubarak era.

It follows that Prime Minister Netanyahu is obligated to ask: What real chance exists that, somehow, this time, and also for the future, diplomacy might be purposeful?

From Oslo to the present Road Map, diplomacy over Israel’s rights and obligations has always been an unambiguously asymmetrical process.

Israel’s principal enemies remain candid. On some things, significantly, they do not lie. On their irremediable intention to annihilate the “Zionist entity,” they are seemingly sworn to truth.
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/columns/louis-rene-beres/what-if-israels-peace-partners-actually-prefer-war/2012/09/21/0/?print

Remembering Where We Came From

 Everybody is saying that this coming year will be momentous; that this will be the year when the decision on whether or not to attack Iran will be made; that this will be a decisive year in the political arena; that this year will be engraved in history; that it will be unforgettable.

I am not a prophet and it could be that this year will fit the bill as above, but I am not at all sure that that the predictions are accurate. In my opinion, the upheavals waiting to happen are not about military or political moves. They are part of a much broader strategic structure.


Personally, I do not believe that Netanyahu will order the army to carry out an open attack on Iran. I think that the time to have done so was when Ahmadinijad declared his intention to destroy Israel and began practical preparations to achieve his goal. From the moment that Israel chose the strategy of passing the buck to the nations of the world, the legitimacy of Israeli action against Iran was lost – both the world and the Israeli Left agree on that. Israel's repeated attempts to force the world to act are like trying to close the stable doors after the horses have run away. And if the US does define a "red line" for Iran, will it be worth more than President Eisenhower's guarantee?


When Israel retreated from Sinai after the 1956 Sinai Campaign, the Americans signed a written guarantee that they would not allow Egypt to blockade the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping. When Naaser invaded the Sinai and blocked the straits, Prime Minister Levi Eshkol called President Lyndon Johnson and reminded him of the US guarantee; the unambiguous, signed "red line" that the Americans provided in exchange for Israel's retreat. "I can't find my copy," LBJ stonewalled over the phone. Now, Israel is pressuring Obama to give us another guarantee that will conveniently get "lost" when it is needed most.


I will be more than happy if my evaluation is wrong. No, I do not want to go to war. Not at all. But more than I fear war, I fear that Israel will slowly disintegrate, making war extraneous. I cannot see how Israel can exist and flourish in the long term in a nuclear Middle East under Iranian hegemony. More than I fear war, I fear that our enemies will not need it.



Read More:

http://www.jewishisrael.org/eng_contents/articles/73/article7301.html

Wake up Jews!

The-Prophet-Jeremiah
No doubt, it's hard for people to give up their lifelong attachments and identity.  But there are moments in history when a turning point arrives, and those with eyes to see and ears to hear recognize it.  Many Jews have made political liberalism their religion and personal identity and the Democrat Party their unexamined home and comfort zone.  But everything changed early September.

Rarely do modern-day political conventions startle.  The Democratic National Convention, however, was earthshaking and a warning to Jews to wake up.  Democrat delegates decided to stick it to Israel.  We no longer care, they roared, if Israel remains a Jewish state; flood her heartland with millions of so-called Palestinians whose goal is to make the state Islamic.  We will not condemn Hamas for targeting Jewish population centers with rockets.  Jerusalem is not Israel's indivisible capital but should be divided, like Berlin was.  Such was the undeniable sentiment of the delegates at the Convention.
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/wake-up-jews/2012/09/28/0/?print

In any war between civilized man and the savage...



The controversial subway advertisement running throughout the MTA.


As a looney lefitist in the NY vandalizes approved ads in the subway, under the guise of  “freedom of expression” (while not allowing others to freely express themselves), her message is very clear.
She sides with the savages.  She finds it offensive that Jihad is considered “savage.”  Savages are those who murder in the name of Jihad; those that murdered the U.S. Ambassador to Libya are savages, those that attacked the World Trade Center are savages, those that stab to death Israeli infants and blow up buses are savages.  That’s Jihad.


See the Video here

Video

September 27, 2012

Delta Flight 15 - 9/11

Here is an amazing story from a flight attendant on Delta Flight 15, written following 9-11:

"On the morning of Tuesday, September 11, we were about 5 hours out of Frankfurt, flying over the North Atlantic. All of a sudden the curtains parted and I was told to go to the cockpit, immediately, to see the captain. As soon as I got there I noticed that the crew had that "All Business" look on their faces. The captain handed me a printed message. It was from Delta's main office in Atlanta and simply read, "All
Airways over the Continental United States are closed to commercial air traffic. Land ASAP at the nearest airport. Advise your destination."

"No one said a word about what this could mean. We knew it was a serious situation and we needed to find terra firma quickly. The captain determined that the nearest airport was 400 miles behind us in Gander, New Foundland. He requested approval for a route change from the Canadian traffic controller and approval was granted immediately--no questions asked. We found out later, of course, why there was no hesitation in approving our request.


NY Times Article


Read More at snopes.


But There is a G-d in Israel

The analysis and proposed transfer of Arabs from Israel that I have set down are not personal views.  They are certainly not political ones.  This is the Jewish outlook, based on halakah the law as postulated in the Torah.


The removal of all Arabs who refuse to accept the exclusive, unquestioned Jewish sovereignty over Eretz Yisrael is not only logical and normal for any Jew with a modicum of an instinct for self-preservation; it is also the Jewish halakic obligation.  It is important that we know this in order to realize what true “Jewishness” really dictates and in order to instill in ourselves the faith and assurance that if we do this, all the nations in the world will be incapable of harming Israel.

     
The Jewish people are not merely one more nation.  “Though I put an end to all the nations among whom thou art scattered, but I will never put an end to thee” (Jeremiah 30:11).  Israel is indestructible.  It is unique, it is holy, it is the Chosen of the L-rd; it has a reason for being.  Its national uniqueness is built on an idea, on an ideology, that it alone has.   The Jew is selected and obligated to be a religio-nation, commanded to obey the laws and follow the path of Torah.  The covenant.  The Jewish people took upon itself the yoke of the L-rd, acknowledging Him as G-d and observing His laws.  The Almighty chose them as His unique people, pledging that they would be indestructible and would live in peace and prosperity in their own land, Eretz Yisrael.
         
The land was given as a reward, as a blessing.  But it is more, much more, than that.  The people of Israel have more than a right to the land; they have an obligation.  “For you shall pass over the Jordan to go in to possess the Land which the L-rd your G-d gives you, and you shall possess it and dwell therein” (Deuteronomy 11:31).

Read More:

http://www.barbaraginsberg-barbara.blogspot.com/

September 20, 2012

What Happens When the Two Israels Meet



ON a summer day in 2007, I made the mistake of touching a young man I shouldn’t have. I was a soldier stationed on a training base near Binyamina, and my job was to teach combat soldiers how to use their personal weapons. That day, the soldiers in our boot camp were divided in half. While one group was firing under the cement shade of the range, I was left with the other, practicing shooting positions under the unforgiving Israeli sun.
The soldiers’ commander and I lined them up and checked to make sure their weapons were empty of bullets. Then I shouted out a position — standing, sitting or lying down — for the soldiers to jump into. Once a soldier felt certain that his position was correct, and that he was on target, he was supposed to scream “on,” and then yell “fire, fire, fire.” In the meantime, I passed by the row of soldiers and corrected them: an incorrect grip on the gun handle, an arm that was not exactly at 90 degrees. One of the more common problems occurred in the sitting position, which was really less like sitting than it was squatting in a way that increased stability and made it easy to spring upright if you had to. This position strained the leg muscles and, with sweat pouring down my face, I could not blame the soldiers who took the easy way out and simply sat on their feet. But it was still my job to make them do it right.



Read More:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/09/opinion/sunday/what-happens-when-the-two-israels-meet.html?emc=eta1

September 18, 2012

No room for scheming

Jews are smart and traditionally have been weak. Thus the national proclivity for scheming. Jews proudly recall historical examples of successful scheming, but forget that there have been many more defeats. The Jews who concluded treaties with Assyria, Rome, and Persia thought that they had outsmarted their enemies. Poland, France, Russia—the list of defective partnerships is endless. The errors often degenerated into bloody pogroms, but in the end Gentile governments interfered, and preserved the remnants of domestic Jewry. The situation is different in Israel. By the time the West interfered—even supposing it would—Arabs could overrun Israel. Gentile governments have acted as last-resort protectors of Jews against annihilation, but won’t shield Israel against assimilation or loss of sovereignty. A Jewish state presupposes Jewish responsibility, with no other recourse or room for errors.
Israelis believe they can outsmart the Arabs. That the Palestinians would be satisfied with a minuscule state cut into two parts while the Jews thrive across the border on the land the Palestinians consider theirs. That Israeli Arabs would be content with institutional discrimination when they cannot obtain prestigious ministerial appointments. That Israeli Arabs would take Jewish money and accept the token Jewishness of Israel, be it the Jew-only Law of Return or the very Jewish anthem, The Hope. Outsmarting an opponent, like every lie, is a short-term tactic. It works—if at all—when the winner can fix the achievements, and the loser cannot demand a return to status quo ante. Israel wrongly presumes that politically correct Western-leaning Jewish politicians have outfoxed the artful Arabs. Israel is still more wrong to presume that the temporary Arab acquiescence to Jewish dominance will last long.

Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/no-room-for-scheming.htm

September 16, 2012

Lo Yaavod!

http://shwekey.com/lo_yaavod/



September 13, 2012

Is it good For the Jews? (Kahane 1971)

 
 
For decades, large numbers of American Jews and the vast majority of their leadership have been practicing the art of national suicide.  Faced with the loss of an elementary understanding that is possessed by even the most backward and primitive of people – that vital issues should be judged on the basis of national self-interest – Jews have consistently vowed fealty to ‘objectivity’, regularly placed liberal or “humanitarian” concepts over Jewish ones and worked tirelessly to destroy themselves.

Any normal people realize that groups base decisions upon self-interest.  Any normal people realizes that democracy is a conglomerate of pressure and self-interest groups with farmers, consumers, unions, Catholics, Blacks and all kinds of lobbyists constantly striving to assure that their interests be served.  Apparently, the Exile has so warped and terrified certain Jews that they strive to escape their Jewishness and the persecution that accrues from it, by becoming citizens of the world and “humans,” thus gaining love and safety from anti-Semitism.
Read More:

http://www.barbaraginsberg-barbara.blogspot.com/

September 12, 2012

US carrier STRIKE group RUSHES to Persian Gulf....



 Carrier-strike-group-rushes-to-Persian Gulf:

I also understand the US just moved another carrier group into the Gulf...
Perhaps this Bibi-Obama stuff is an intentional distraction for the US is getting ready to strike Iran?

http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Security-Industry/2012/08/27/Carrier-strike-group-rushes-to-PersianGulf/UPI-35731346063400/?spt=hs&or=si

"Panetta said the Stennis Strike Group, which includes a guided missile cruiser and four guided missile destroyers, is necessary in the gulf to guard against threats to U.S. national security interests and "obviously, Iran is one of those threats," he said."


If so and we destroy Iran's Nuke capability fast and forcefully....election over, landslide.
Even the Dual citizen Israeli would vote for BHO....

Got any better intel on the gulf?

September 11, 2012

Meir Kahane was one of the most illustrious Jewish figures of the twentieth century.




Meir Kahane

Meir Kahane was one of the most illustrious Jewish figures of the twentieth century. A follower of Zhabotinsky, Meir Kahane started his political career in childhood by leading a march to protest the anti-Semitic policies of a British politician, Ernest Bevin.
Meir Kahane received rabbinical ordination from the famed Mir Yeshiva in New York. Kahane became prominent in the United States after he founded the Jewish Defense League, which protected elderly Jews and American Jewish institutions against anti-Semites. In his pursuit of Jewish interests, Meir Kahane had no qualms about cooperating with anyone, from Italian mobsters to the FBI; for the rabbi, the overarching goal of Jewish safety trumped moral concerns. Rabbi Kahane had no problem using firearms and explosives to protect his fellow Jews.
After substantially curbing anti-Semitic violence, Kahane’s JDL broke the spell of silence over the fate of Soviet Jewry. American Jewish leaders, given to “quiet diplomacy”—so quiet as to make it undetectable—immediately condemned Meir Kahane’s activism. By a campaign of bombings against Soviet offices in America, Kahane threatened the US-USSR detente and brought the topic of oppressed Soviet Jewry to the front pages of American media. The Russians were forced to negotiate. Thanks to Rabbi Kahane, tens of thousands of Russian Jews were allowed to leave the USSR. The American Jewish establishment took over Meir Kahane’s campaign, and the floodgates opened with a million-strong aliyah.
Rabbi Meir Kahane moved to Israel where he campaigned under the slogan, “I’m saying what you’re thinking.” Kahane’s Kach (Thus!) party advocated population exchanges with Arab countries, annexing Judea and Samaria, and introducing basic elements of Judaism as Israeli laws. After a series of electoral defeats, Meir Kahane entered the Knesset. The leftist Israeli media went berserk with a Kahane-bashing campaign. Likud and Shas joined the anti-Kahane efforts because their voters massively went over to Rabbi Meir. Polls predicted for Kahane’s party an increase from one to thirteen seats. At that point, the Israeli Supreme Court banned Kach for racism despite the fact that Israeli law explicitly removes religious arguments from the definition of racism, and Rabbi Kahane’s every statement was firmly rooted in Jewish law, halacha.
Undeterred, Meir Kahane led a referendum to transfer Israeli Arabs to a state of their own, annex Judea and Samaria, and ban anti-Jewish parties. Maariv published a report that Mossad planned the assassination of Rabbi Kahane. He also received similar threats from Shabak. In 1990, Meir Kahane was assassinated during a speech in New York. The Arab accused of murdering Rabbi Kahane was acquitted, as the weapon lacked his fingerprints; the real assassin remains unknown.
After Meir Kahane’s death, the Kach Party was banned over the Baruch Goldstein incident. The first open Kahanist, Michael Ben Ari, has entered the Knesset in the 2009 elections, and renegade Kahanist Avigdor Lieberman became the Israeli parliament’s permanent feature. Several splinter groups claim to be guided by Meir Kahane’s principles; the most active among them is Baruch Marzel’s Jewish National Front party.
Meir Kahane left us several books, thousands of articles, and a few video lectures. Israeli Chief Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu praised Rabbi Kahane’s seminal work The Jewish Idea as an outstanding achievement in religious scholarship. In the book, Rabbi Kahane explained the contemporary political relevance of traditional Jewish concepts.
Learning Rabbi Meir Kahane’s heritage is indispensable for any person interested in Jewish or Israeli matters.

 http://samsonblinded.com/blog/shohers-musings

White House declines Netanyahu request to meet with Obama

The White House's response marks a new low in relations between Netanyahu and Obama, underscored by the fact that this is the first time Netanyahu will visit the U.S. as prime minister without meeting Obama. 

The White House declined Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's request on Tuesday to meet U.S. President Barack Obama during a UN conference in New York at the end of the month.
An official in Jerusalem said that the prime minister's office sent the White House a message stating that although Netanyahu will spend only two and a half days on U.S. soil, he is interested in meeting Obama and is willing to travel  to the U.S. capital specifically for that purpose.  The official added that the White House rejected the request and said that at this time Obama's schedule does not allow for a meeting.
The White House's response marks a new low in relations between Netanyahu and Obama, underscored by the fact that this is the first time Netanyahu will visit the U.S. as prime minister without meeting the president.


Read More:

http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/white-house-declines-netanyahu-request-to-meet-with-obama.premium-1.464328

The quick and the dead

Galatians 6:10: “Let us do good to all people, but especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”
The Germans did have a problem with the Jews. The better economic performance of the Jews demonstrated that their very different way of life was indeed better than the German way, or at least more efficient. That automatically meant that the German way of life, a matter of national pride, was wrong. It’s hard to know that you live a wrong life.
Christianity and Hinduism exist in parallel spaces, not infringing on each other. Judaism and Christianity are at odds. If Jews are right, then Christians are wrong. If Jews prosper, then there seems to be something wrong with the divine promise to Christians. Nice Christians and resourceful theologians could explain it otherwise, but that’s how most people see the situation.
Jews were institutionally inferior in Germany. We were officially discriminated against, openly defenseless. Repressions against Jews were implicitly sanctioned, even if the state usually stopped the mob from outright slaughter of Jews. To kill a Jew, if not precisely legal, was logical and reputable.

Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/arab-problem


The roots of antisemitism

Anti-Semitism doesn’t stem merely from Jewish difference. Chinese are very different from Westerners, economically successful, clannish, and arguably xenophobic, but not hated. Assimilated German Jews, Eastern European Jewish paupers, and cosmopolitan socialist Jews are all hated and murdered on occasion. Traits like visible wealth, exploitation, and misanthropy play a role in the development of hatred, but they are neither necessary nor sufficient. Poor, non-exploitative, and outgoing Gypsies are universally detested. Wealthy Swiss and swaggering French are universally respected. The difference in the treatment of Jews under pagan, Christian, and Muslim rule provides a clue as to the source of anti-Semitism.
Ancient Greek sources are somewhat respectful of Jews, while most Roman authors deride us. Both Greeks and Romans were religiously tolerant polytheists. Both staked their culture above others. Rome, unlike Greece, had an imperial ideology of totalitarian strength and cultural messianism. That mix, characteristic of Russia, now permeates the United States.
The major difference between Christian and Islamic attitudes toward Jews is the moderate institutional protection that exists in Islam (dhimmitude) versus the institutional condemnation in Christianity. Human societies are full of discontent and hatreds. People loathe to admit ethically censured feelings, and rationalize them instead.
Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/anti-semitism

Terror for Judea

The idea of Judea has proved remarkably sustainable. Two decades after the first Kahanist government of Judea received suspended sentences, the general population is sufficiently frustrated with the treacherous government of Israel to return to Project Judea.
Head-on opposition to the government is dangerous to your job. Married people cannot easily give up their jobs. Several other strata are more likely to join the secessionist movement: young people who don’t want to attend universities after the army, university graduates without good employment opportunities, lone (mostly divorced) people, and retirees.
While participation in semi-peaceful protest carries only a moderate threat to employment and the probability of a few hits by police, radical opposition to the state is totally different—it is suicidal. The Israeli government staged the murders of remotely dangerous politicians such as Kahane and Ze’evi, and would surely hunt down radicals who insist on overturning the corrupt state which audaciously calls itself Jewish. The precondition for joining radical action is recognizing oneself as dead. Any harm which one could inflict on the treacherous government and its leftist and Arab supporters before actually descending into the grave adds to the balance of positive deeds. Radicals are unlikely to live to see their dream of a truly Jewish state fulfilled. Their goal is very short-term: cause as much damage to the establishment as they can. Yes, that’s the attitude of suicide bombers, and also of the Soviet heroes who undertook suicidal missions during WWII, and of the Jewish youths who went to the British gallows instead of asking the Mandate Administration for a pardon.

Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/terror-for-judea.htm

Our position with Christians

First of all, we don’t forget centuries of discrimination and extermination. Anti-Semitism is ingrained and would re-emerge during a crisis of Western societies.
There is, however, an opportunity for rapprochement. The New Testament presents ample evidence that Jesus was a Jewish teacher, rather than the conscious founder of a new religion. In the Gospel of Matthew, which is attributed to a Jewish apostle and ostensibly closest to the facts, Jesus repeatedly urges observance of the law, and even accuses the Pharisees of insufficiently zealous observance despite their generally correct teaching. The Church has historically glossed over Jesus’ explicit pronouncements in favor of Judaism. Modern Christians read the Bible rather than listening to clerical exegeses, and come much closer to Judaism than their ancestors, who often knew Christianity only from their pastor’s diatribes.

Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/our-position-with-christians.htm

Is Half-Shabbos Really No Shabbos?

As an Orthodox rabbi who works closely with teenagers and their parents, I am pleased that your magazine confronts important issues in our community. In general, the articles not only point out problems that exist within the Orthodox population but describe possible solutions to these challenges. However, the spring issue contained an article that is more harmful than helpful and reflects a growing trend in the Orthodox community to broadly categorize and degrade teenagers who may be struggling with aspects of their religious observance.
I found Jonathan Rosenblum’s article “Half Shabbos Is No Shabbos” to be problematic, on both halachic and educational grounds.
We obviously put serious weight on Shabbat observance. Beyond the specific mitzvot associated with the day, Shabbat serves an essential role as a theological and historical anchor for our community. But is “half Shabbos no Shabbos”? Even if this was not the intent of the article, the extreme formulation sends a message to teenagers who are not perfect in their observance that their positive engagement with Shabbat has no merit. Ironically, we would never say this to a public school teenager in NCSY, but we are willing to denigrate a struggling yeshivah student as being a “half-Shabbos” or even a “no-Shabbos” observer.

Read More:

http://www.ou.org/jewish_action/08/2012/is-half-shabbos-really-no-shabbos/

Who Financed 9/11 & Has Justice Been Done?

It's still a mystery as to who financed 9/11 because if indeed we know who financed 9/11, we would have punished the ones who financed it.

It's almost 11 years since the 9/11 attacks on the USA. The 9/11 commission was established "to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11 attacks", but until today, many average citizens seem to have more questions about the event than answers.
Former Arab Terrorist Walid Shoebat, author of the book "Why We Want to Kill You" is currently in the midst of researching the Saudi Arabian connection to the attacks. He is looking to see if justice has been meted out to the Saudis who were involved behind the scenes in the planning and financing of 9/11. What he is finding out is very disturbing.
All 19 of the 9/11 hijackers were Al Qaeda members with 15 of them being Saudi Arabian citizens. Certainly there is a Saudi connection, concludes Shoebat. He was speaking with Arutz Sheva's Tamar Yonah on her News & Views radio show.  
In the interview, Shoebat told Yonah, "It's still a mystery as far as who financed 9/11 because if indeed we know who financed 9/11, we would have punished the ones who financed 9/11. I mean we got Osama Bin Laden, and we bombed Al Qaeda to smithereens, and Tora Bora and all these things, but what about the financing part? Was Saudi Arabia behind it? How come none of the fat-rich Saudis ---uh seems like they got away and there was very little punishment towards any significant Saudi figure.  ...Did the United States get justice for the families of the victims of  9/11?"  
Shoebat said that many facts of the event do not add up. Several court cases have been held against Saudi bigwigs. Many have been dismissed, not due to finding the defendant innocent, but for 'lack of jurisdiction'.  
"Now that's a very funny thing", Shoebat told Yonah. "Because how can it be possible that we let somebody go because of lack of jurisdiction? Did we need jurisdiction when we went after Bin Laden?"
Clearly frustrated, Shoebat stated, "[Everybody] talks about the tip of the hose. And forgetting the main source, the spigot, where the source is coming out from. We talk about Al Qaeda, but we don't talk about the Muslim Brotherhood which created Al Qaeda or the Saudi government that helped create Al Qaeda." 
Shoebat questioned the Bush-Saudi connection, the fact that U.S. President Bush grounded all flights immediaitely after the attack, yet gave the green light for flying Saudi VIPs out of the USA.  
Different theories were discussed as Shoebat spoke about the mysterious deaths of three Saudi princes after an Al Qaeda member who was being interrogated gave up their names. A short time later, all three princes were dead -within one week of each other.  
Is there some tacit leniency with the Saudis?  Has justice been done for the victims?


Read More:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/159677#.UE92D66JRlu

When the Wall Falls

Old synagogue of Meron near the grave of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.
Old synagogue of Meron near the grave of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai.
Photo Credit: Danny Ventura
The ancient synagogue in Meron is located on a hill above the grave of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai.   Like other Galilean synagogues from the Byzantine era, its entrance faces south, towards Jerusalem.

But what makes this synagogue special is a story from its later history.  A student of Rabbi Ovadiah of Bartenura wrote in 1495 about the synagogue:
I also saw the synagogue of Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, and it's also a building made of large stones, but now it's in ruins and there's only one wall remaining.  And the people of Safed say that when the wall falls, our Messiah will come, speedily in our days.  And I was told that in the year of the Spanish Expulsion lightning struck that wall and it started to fall, and the people of Safed made a day of feasting and happiness.

The Jews were expelled from Spain in 1492, just three years before this story was written down.

The broken lintel stands till today, though the Antiquities Authority has made sure it won't fall on the visiting tourists, by fixing it with cement.

Next Year in Jerusalem

Traditional Mount Zion, from Tower over the Jaffa Gate, South.
Traditional Mount Zion, from Tower over the Jaffa Gate, South.
Photo Credit: OSU Special Collections & Archives (image is adjusted).
At the climax of the Yom Kippur services, and the conclusion of the Jewish High Holy Days, some two weeks from now, millions of Jews around the world will cry out, "Next Year in Jerusalem", expressing their hope for a final redemption.

There is a similar faith at the heart of the DNC's amended platform which states, "Jerusalem is and will remain the capital of Israel. The parties have agreed that Jerusalem is a matter for final status negotiations."

Like the Jews praying for Jerusalem, the DNC's platform supports a Jerusalem as Israel's capital that is not a material Jerusalem, but a spiritual Jerusalem, a place that will come into being only when the messiah of the peace process has come and the terrorists have put down their guns and after twenty or two thousand or twenty thousand years have agreed to some final status agreement that falls short of making full territorial claims on the capital of Jerusalem.
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/next-year-in-jerusalem/2012/09/10/?print

Democratic Platform: No Mention of Islamist Challenge, No Support for Arab Liberals

President Barack Obama accepting the Democratic nomination Thursday night
President Barack Obama accepting the Democratic nomination Thursday night
Photo Credit: DNC
Visit Barry Rubin's Blog, Rubin Reports. 

When the authors of the Democratic platform’s sections dealing with the Middle East—I dealt with the section on Israel in a previous article—finished it they were no doubt quite satisfied. They felt that they had built a strong case for reelected President Barack Obama along the following lines:

America is more secure and popular. Al-Qaida and the Taliban are on the run. The wars in Afghanistan and Iraq are ending. America is supporting democracy, women’s rights, and gay rights around the world. Isn’t this great leadership? How could anyone not vote for Obama?

When I read the platform I am shocked and disappointed. I can pick at the issues of popularity, Afghanistan and Iraq. But the failure to deal with revolutionary Islamism is ridiculously glaring (they didn’t use the tiniest fig leaf to cover themselves), making a mockery about the democracy and human rights’ pretensions. The treatment of Middle East allies is shockingly insulting. The issues of Syria and Egypt are simply dodged. There is not a single mention of the opposition in Iran. All terrorists not involved directly in the September 11, 2001, attacks are ignored. There is not the slightest hint that any regional strategy exists at all.

Not a single word implies that the United States is willing to help allies fight revolutionary Islamist threats. In fact, the words “Islam” and “Muslim” do not appear once, even in some discussion of good Muslims versus bad radical heretics. They could have said something like: "Islam is a religion of peace but there are some extremists who wish to distort its teachings, take power, and institute repressive and anti-American dictatorships. We support our allies in defending themselves against these threats and support true democratic reformers in fighting against such oppressive forces that deny equality to women, religious minorities, and gay people." But they didn't even do that.

If they don’t even see the main threat at all how can one trust such people to rule the country and provide leadership in the region? What can American allies in the region—aside from Israel--expect from President Obama to protect them from internal revolutionaries, international terrorists, and revolutionary Islamist states?
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/analysis/rubin-reports/democratic-platform-no-mention-of-islamist-challenge-no-support-for-arab-liberals/2012/09/07/0/?print

Surrender Corrupts the Soul of Israel

A Palestinian celebrates on top of the burned car of the two Israeli soldiers who were taken from it and lynched next to Ramallah, October 12, 2000.
A Palestinian celebrates on top of the burned car of the two Israeli soldiers who were taken from it and lynched next to Ramallah, October 12, 2000.
Photo Credit: Flash90
This morning, a friend sent me an article by Leonard Fein called “Occupation Corrupts Soul of Israel.”

Fein writes,

Hakibush mashchit — The occupation corrupts.

And so, plainly, it does. But so what? However inadvertent the origins, the poison fruit is today fully ripe. To understand that, it is not sufficient to call attention to the horrific attack in Zion Square the other night, the attack by a mob that threatened the life of Jamal Julani, or even to add to it the firebombing hours earlier of a taxi near Gush Etzion in which six Palestinians, two of them children, were wounded.


He goes on to talk about “settler violence,” the complicity of the authorities (if you ask the ‘settlers’, they will tell you that the authorities in fact protect the Arabs), price tag vandalism, etc.

Is this the “poison fruit” of ‘occupation’?

Or is it simply that some Jews have — after decades of murder, vandalism, no-go zones in Israel’s capital and other places, stonings, lynchings, etc. — learned to act like Arabs?

Did the poison come from Jews living in their historic homeland, or from the Arabs who hate them?

The Left’s solution is to end the ‘occupation’, to withdraw from Judea, Samaria, the Golan, and eastern Jerusalem. In short, give them what they want and everything will be fine. Of course “what they want” is not limited to the territories, and surrendering them will just send the message that we are too weak to resist, and they will redouble their efforts to obtain the rest.

I responded to my friend that if ‘occupation’ corrupts the soul, then withdrawal, with its concomitant rocket attacks and terrorism might well corrupt the body in a very physical way.

But in addition to the security issues, there is something still more important, which is well-understood by the Arabs, if not by the Leonard Feins. Here is a 2009 remark by PLO official Abbas Zaki, which explains it well:
Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/blogs/fresno-zionism/surrender-corrupts-the-soul-of-israel/2012/09/07/0/?print


‘I am Refugee’: Israel Launches Int’l Campaign on Expulsion of Jews from Arab Lands

In the course of the operation "Magic Carpet" (1949-1950), the entire community of Yemenite Jews (called Teimanim, about 49,000) immigrated to Israel on "the wings of eagles."












In the course of the operation "Magic Carpet" (1949-1950), the entire community of Yemenite Jews (called Teimanim, about 49,000) immigrated to Israel on "the wings of eagles."


Before 1948, there were close to one million Jews living in the Arab world, while today only a few thousand still remain. During the four years following the establishment of the state of Israel, violent anti-Semitic riots broke out across the Middle East and restrictive government measures were put in place, which forced ancient Jewish communities, some thousands of years old, to dissolve. Driven from their homes and properties, 856,000 Jews were expelled from Arab countries and Iran, fleeing mostly to Israel but also to the United States, Europe, Canada, and elsewhere.

 The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has launched a new campaign to mark this tragedy in cooperation with the World Jewish Congress and the Ministry of Pensioner Affairs. Called ‘I Am a Refugee,’ the international campaign seeks to bring the forgotten and often overlooked stories of Jewish refugees from Arab countries to both Israel and the international community.

The campaign, led by Deputy Foreign Minister, Daniel Ayalon, whose own father’s family was forced to flee Algeria, aims to highlight the injustices that were done to the Jewish refugees, via Facebook and online sources. “The time has come to correct an ongoing historical injustice that has affected half of the population of Israel,” said Deputy FM Ayalon on the MFA website.

Jews living in Libya, Algeria, Tunisia, Iraq, Iran, Morocco, Egypt, Yemen and Syria lost their legal status, properties and homes, which in many cases were seized by the government.  On the I Am a Refugee Facebook campaign page, personal stories, photos, video documentaries, and documents have been uploaded of Jewish life and escape from these different Middle Eastern countries.  In one pre-World War II photo, a class of Jewish youngsters can be seen in a Benghazi synagogue, while another photo depicts a Jewish wedding in Aleppo, Syria in 1914. In others, Iraqi and Kurdish Jewish refugees are seen arriving to Israel in the 1950s, while other photos show life in the Israeli transit camps that absorbed these refugees.  An uploaded video documentary tells the story of a Jewish family’s exodus from Egypt.

According to MFA website, the personal stories that appear on the Facebook page will be presented at a conference in New York when the United National General Assembly convenes at the end of September.

Ayalon has asked Jewish refugees and their families to take an active part of this campaign via Facebook, to “tell the world your personal story, which is an inseparable part of the Jewish people and the story of the re-establishment of the State of Israel.”

This past June, the United Nations marked World Refugee Day, where only one group of refugees—the Jewish refugees from Arab countries– was noticeably absent, according to a recent Huffington Post article written by Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Ron Proser. “The historic Jewish presence in the Arab World must be recognized. The grave injustices inflicted upon them must be acknowledged,” Prosor wrote in response to the UN oversight.

The I Am a Refugee campaign aims to open the way to international acknowledgement and recognition of the Jewish refugee issue. This coming Monday, an international conference of jurists and experts on the refugee matter will be held in Jerusalem, to continue to advance this campaign.

About the Author: Anav Silverman is a regular contributor to Tazpit News Agency.

Silence About Migron......

Silence about Migron

And the People of Israel were silent – about Migron
The deafening silence before and during the destruction of Migron chokes us all and fills our eyes with tears… but the head says – never again!
We are like a coiled spring that is stepped upon , more and more, but soon the release will come
We are marching towards a new era, it’s in the air
Like before the Redemption of Egypt, like before the exile from Europe
Our adherence and devotion to the Land of Israel will determine whether it will be with mercy
Shabbat Shalom,
Yehudit Katsover and Nadia Matar

www.womeningreen.org

Israel Won't Attack: By Moshe Feiglin

19 Elul, 5772 - Sept. 6, '12

Translated from Makor Rishon

"You chose disgrace instead of war, you got disgrace and war as well."

Winston Churchill after the Munich Accords

Somehow, the common question in Israel today is if the Prime Minister has the right to decide to attack Iran or not. "He has the chutzpah to think that he can decide," former Supreme Court justice Winograd more or less pontificated, capturing the headlines of all the major news outlets.

The world is upside down. There is only one person who has the right to decide on the Iran issue, and that is the Prime Minister. It makes no difference at all how he makes the decision: whether by consulting with ministers and advisors or the military top brass, or by plain intuition. The state exists to protect its citizens. Accordingly, the citizens vote for the person who will lead them. They deposit in his hands – and his hands only – that authority and responsibility.

The vacuous claims that undermine the Prime Minister's authority to make the decision for which he was elected by the sovereign – the nation – are reminiscent of other rounds of similar media intervention. Four mothers, or more specifically, one radio talk-show host named Shelly Yechimovitz, managed to undermine the authority of the Prime Minister when Israel was in Lebanon. Ultimately, Ehud Barak pulled the IDF out of Lebanon. When the missiles landed in Haifa and we paid a price more dear than all the victims of the IDF presence in Lebanon, nobody reminded us of Yechimovitz and her four mothers.

Nobody will remember Vinograd and the leftist IDF officers when Israel will be forced to deal with the new Islamic caliphate headed by the modern day Salah a Din, Ahmadinijad.

Don't worry, though. Israel will not attack Iran. For the past two years, I have repeatedly written, warned and met with senior ministers in an attempt to explain that the concept of a united international front against Iran is a strategic error. The greatest danger is not the nuclear bomb, but Iran's declared intention to destroy us. Even if it doesn't look like Israel has the technological capacity to overcome the nuclear threat, it must attack, nevertheless. If it doesn't attack, it reinforces the world's impression that once again, the Jew must pay for his right to breathe air on this globe. We are back to the thirties and Hitler's vicious speeches. The sands in the hourglass of our right to exist are running out. It is no coincidence that Israel's loss of legitimacy and Ahmadinijad's declarations parallel each other.

The time to deal with the breach in the dam is when the crack is detected – not when the water surges through. Now, with the question mark over our right to exist hovering over our heads, it is only a matter of history presenting the opportunity for the next diabolical despot – be it Ahmadinijad or any other leader – to carry out his nefarious plans. The principle that allowed the Holocaust to unfold in the early 1940s was determined in the speeches in the Reichstag in the early 1930s. The State of Israel was established to avoid a repeat of the same situation. Its lack of a practical response to Ahmadinijad's speeches is a betrayal of the purpose of its existence.

Initially, the world expected us to attack Iran immediately. After all, for the past sixty years we have been dragging every visiting diplomat to the Holocaust memorial at Yad Vashem. It was a given that Israel would not sit idly by in the face of such blatant threats. But in no time, it turned out that all we were saying to the world was "Have mercy on us" "Accept us," and not "Be careful of us." When Israel made the US responsible for its well-being, the tables turned. Now, when we face a very tangible threat, the world is willing only to have pity on us.

The situation today is reminiscent of the buildup to the Six Day War. Then, as well, Prime Minister Eshkol expected US President Johnson to make good on America's commitment to Israel after it retreated from the Sinai, promising to intervene if the Straits of Tiran were blocked. Then there was no "red line." The line had already been delineated years before. "I can't find my copy of the document," Johnson said to Eshkol. Now, Netanyahu is trying to force the copy out of Obama. But he will never find it.

There is a huge difference between then and now. Eshkol had an army eager to fight. He had officers, not politicians in uniform. And he had a citizenry that hurried to dig trenches in the parks; it had not yet been brainwashed by the irresponsible, defeatist media.

As usual, Israel is attempting to solve its strategic problem with a media spin about super weapons that the Americans may be kind enough to give us – more as a ladder with which to climb down from the tree of declarations than as a true solution.

The international pressure strategy puts Israel in a hopeless situation in the world and against its own noisy left wing. The Leftists that smelled the lack of leadership in Israel, woke up and began protesting. In light of the current situation, the chances that this government will attack Iran are nearly zero. A different Israeli government will have to deal with both the war and the disgrace.

The Pita that Reived Terror

And all the nations will see that the Name of G-d is called upon you and they will fear you. (From this week's Torah portion, Ki Tavo, Deuteronomy 28:10)

During the First Lebanon War, the IDF forced the PLO terrorists all the way to the Beirut port and from there to Tunisia. The PLO, which had lost its stronghold in Lebanon was shattered. Salach Taamri, the most senior and admired terrorist captured by the IDF, was imprisoned in the Ansar detention camp. He was a broken man.
Later, he was interviewed by Aharon Barnea, who also wrote a book about him, called "To be Captive."
In Barnea's book, Taamri describes the situation of the terror organization prior to Pesach, 28 years ago. "I concluded," said Taamri, "that we had no chance to overpower Israel's financial and military prowess, and that we should make do with the crumbs that they would throw us and fold up all our flags." Taamri, an intellectual and patriot, willingly cooperated with his captors. The other prisoners understood from their admired commander that the end had come and the war was lost. And then, Taamri continued, a surprising event took place that turned everything upside down.

"My hands were holding the cold bars and I was looking from inside my dark jail cell toward the hall, where an Israeli guard was walking. I saw him from far. He was walking slowly, holding something in his hand that he would constantly bring close to his mouth. He would bring it close and then distance it. When he was close to my cell, I called to him. I saw that he was eating a pita. He would bite, chew, bite and chew.

'You are a Jew,' I said to him. 'Why are you eating chametz on Pesach? Don't you know that it is forbidden for a Jew to eat chametz on this holiday?

'I am not committed to the things that happened to my People during the exodus from Egypt 2000 years ago. I have no connection to it,' said the Jewish prison guard.

I sat on the mattress in my cell and said to myself: A nation of people who do not have a connection with their past; who are willing to publicly desecrate the laws of their faith, is a nation that has cut off the roots from its land. We will be able to achieve our goals. On that night, my approach completely changed. I couldn't fall asleep. In all those hours of darkness, I replayed that scene with the Jewish prison guard.

The next morning I gathered the Palestinian leadership in the prison; all those who knew my opinion over the years. I told them about my experience and the conclusions that I reached. I clarified to everyone that from that morning, we were embarking on a new course: a war for everything. Not for a small percentage and not for crumbs that they would throw us. For opposing us was a nation that lacked the connection to its roots; a nation not interested in its past. Thus, its motivation was necessarily void of any will to struggle and fight.
Since then, I have told my story to tens of thousands. I convinced all of them that the approach must be changed and that we must struggle without compromise."

Taamri was elected to the Palestinian parliament and indeed convinced his friends, breathing new spirit into the war against Israel. The damage done by that pita eaten by the Israeli soldier on the holiday of Pesach cannot be exaggerated.

The question mark hovering over the right of the Jewish state to exist – and as a result, over its right to defend itself in the face of existential threat – is directly connected to the verse from this week's Torah portion above.

When the nations of the world see that G-d's Name is called upon us, when we know who we are, understand what we represent and are at peace with our destiny, the power of deterrence that the terrorist Taamri initially felt will be established. But when it turns out that we are not interested in G-d's Name being called upon us, the nations can openly plan to destroy us, with nuclear weapons or in any other way – with no fear.


Shabbat Shalom,



Moshe Feiglin

Jerusalem, Washington, And The Iranian Question

Keeping-Jerusalem
The Jewish people have had bitter experience in recent decades with enemies who repeatedly vow to destroy them. Despite this, here are some of the arguments being presented as to why Israel should not attack Iran:

● Israel will require American support – meaning intelligence, equipment, diplomacy – for whatever actions it takes against Iran.

● An Israeli attack might not succeed, and/or might only delay the Iranian nuclear program.

● A strike could trigger rocket attacks against Israel, followed by a drawn-out war.

● Obama truly wants to prevent Iran from going nuclear, and an Israeli attack would weaken his hand.

On the other hand, here are some of the arguments in favor of a pre-emptive Israeli strike:

● Iranian leaders have repeatedly stated their goal of destroying Israel. Nuclear weapons will allow them to realize this goal – or to continue to threaten to do so while encouraging Hamas and Hizbullah to attack Israel.

● An Israeli attack will not lead to all-out war, for neither Iran nor Israel are interested in it; each side will carefully measure its actions and responses so as to ensure that war does not occur.

● Diplomacy has run its course, with even UN diplomats now saying Iran uses negotiations as a stalling tactic. Similarly, the sanctions are too late, as Israel can't afford to wait a year or two to see if they will be successful.

● A Wall Street Journal editorial said that because of the U.S. presidential election, American opposition is no longer red but yellow. Washington knows the time to act against Iran is running out, and Obama will be hard-pressed to oppose an Israeli strike with Election Day approaching.

As the editorial put it, "If the U.S. has no serious intention to go beyond sanctions, Israel's only alternative to action is to accept a nuclear Iran and then stand by as the rest of its neighbors acquire nuclear weapons of their own. That scenario is the probable end of Israel." In short, it is a zero-sum game: Either Obama will go for it, thus "saving" Israel, or he won't, and then Israel must attack.


Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/columns/keeping-jerusalem/jerusalem-washington-and-the-iranian-question/2012/09/06/0/?print

Should Israel bet the farm on U.S. promises?

U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak deliver statements, Aug. 1, 2012.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, left, and Israel's Defense Minister Ehud Barak deliver statements, Aug. 1, 2012.
Photo Credit: Tsafrir Abayov/Flash90/Maariv & NRG OUT
Recently, Israel’s security cabinet met for 10 hours to discuss, among other things, Iran. Details of  the meeting were secret, but
It is likely that among the issues discussed were the “red lines” that Israel would like the United States to establish as a way of deterring Iran from moving ahead. While Netanyahu has not publicly declared what he thinks those red lines should be, Uzi Arad, the former head of the National Security Council, said that they could include a declaration that any uranium enrichment beyond 20 percent would be a direct trigger for military action.

Arad, in an Israel Radio interview, said other possible red lines could be the discovery of additional uranium enrichment plants – like the once secret facilities at Natanz and Fordow – or the interference with the work of International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors.

In addition, Arad said that the US has not yet spoken in “categorical terms” making crystal clear its determination to stop the Iranian nuclear march.

An example of this, he said, would be clearer presidential declarations to the effect that the US will not tolerate or allow a nuclear Iran, and will use all means to prevent it.

Other “categorical” expressions of this determination, Arad said, could be congressional authorization now of the use of force if diplomacy fails to convince the Iranians to halt, and a clear statement that the military objective of any US action would not be to “buy time,” but rather to prevent Iran from ever being able to build a nuclear bomb.


Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/blogs/fresno-zionism/should-israel-bet-the-farm-on-u-s-promises/2012/09/06/0/?print

September 11, 2001..... - Yaakov Kirschen (Dry Bones)


November 20, 2001
Dry Bones cartoon: Kirschen, September 11, Terrorism, terrorists, attack, NYC, NY, Iraq, Afghanistan, America,
I drew today's cartoon back in 2001.
A month had passed since the September 11 attack on the Twin Towers.
Eleven years have now gone by.


http://drybonesblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/september-11-2001.html

Report of New Iranian Nuclear Work Backs Up Israel’s Claims



Qoms Nuclear Site
Qoms Nuclear Site
Israel news photo: NASA
 
An Associated Press report that new intelligence reveals Iran is moving closer to nuclear capability strengthens Israel’s position and could not come at a worse time for United States President Barack Obama.
The news agency said that the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) concluded that Iran has made progress in calculating the destructive power of an atomic warhead, which presumably would be used as a threat to destroy Israel.

The sources of the new intelligence are the two unidentified Western countries, plus the United States and Israel.


Read More:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/159871#.UE89fa6JRls

September 10, 2012

Jerusalem Debacle at the DNC: Whither the Jewish Vote?


 YouTube Preview Image

I was both elated and scared when I heard the “nays” and “boos” emanating from the Democratic National Convention floor Wednesday as a pathetic Antonio Villaraigosa desperately tried to take votes amending the Democratic platform on “God” and “Jerusalem” — elated because I was watching a bogus public dumb show come apart, at least temporarily, at the seams, but scared because I was staring, again at least temporarily, into the gaping yaw of the 1930s.
For those fleeting seconds, I realized that, yes, it could also happen here, because, make no mistake about it, those copious boos were not for “God” (except, perhaps, for a few scattered nitwits), but for Israel. A sizable and serious claque on the Democratic National Convention floor was shouting and applauding against the Jews.
Back when I was a kid, when I used to see the Auschwitz numbers on the arms of the nurses in my doctor father’s office, I would wonder how something that horrible could happen. It was beyond my childhood imagination. No longer, unfortunately. Not that the Democratic Party is the equivalent of the Nazi Party, even remotely. I won’t indulge in that game. But those boos, taken with the overall theme of the convention — that we all belong to the government — are chilling. That people of color are often the ones being seduced by this garbage is even more depressing to this ex-civil rights worker. Where, oh where, is Martin Luther King?

Read More:

http://pjmedia.com/rogerlsimon/2012/09/06/jerusalem-debacle-at-the-dnc/

Conservative Jews must unite in order to defeat the coalition of Arabs and Jewish leftists.

Protest this

The right wing is fragmented. People of strong principles lack the tolerance of the spineless left. Haredim detest less Orthodox Jews who detest atheists who detest haredim. Conservative Jews must unite in order to defeat the coalition of Arabs and Jewish leftists. The unification platform should be the lowest common denominator of the various right-wing groups: a Jewish state without Arabs, extra-hard responses to terrorism, and an at least autonomous Judea. Differences would have to be glossed over. Religious Jews can theoretically accept a small number of non-voting Arabs, which pragmatic nationalists oppose. The mere cessation of territorial concessions is too modest a goal for many who would rather return all of Judea and Samaria under Jewish control. Those differences are not essential now. First, we need to stop the onslaught on the Jewish state by Arabs (demographically) and leftists (politically).
Years from now, if we succeed, we can debate the degree of religious education to be required in Israeli schools, the cessation of atheist propaganda, and bringing the Jews back to Judaism. For now, religious Jews have to accept secular Jews as full partners. A strong, defiant, ideologically charged Jewish state would turn more Jews to our religious and cultural roots, and ease the religious-secular divide. Absent of leftist brainwashing, the children of today’s atheists could become traditionalist or even Orthodox Jews.

Read More:

http://samsonblinded.com/blog/protest-this.htm

September 6, 2012

Maybe it's time to realize that Israel is on its own



Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Bret Stephens argues that maybe it's time for Israel to realize that we really are on our own (Hat Tip: Soccer Dad). Maybe, dear Western reader, you think the administration is right to stay Israel's hand—because you'd rather have the U.S. do the job cleanly, after exhausting whatever other options remain, rather than risk having Israel do the job messily. Maybe you have a fair and defensible point.

Or maybe you think that the mullahs nuclear ambitions are their own business and they'll leave us alone if only we leave them. Maybe you're Ron Paul.

Read More:

http://israelmatzav.blogspot.com/2012/09/maybe-its-time-to-realize-that-israel.html

Identity, Meaning And Liberty

Feiglin-Moshe
If it wants to survive and thrive, Israel must base itself upon three key concepts: identity, meaning, and liberty.

Identity: This means asking ourselves who we are. Jews? Israelis? Just partners in a large insurance firm called the State of Israel? What is our shared narrative? Do we have a shared founding ethos? What is the significance of the fact that we are a Jewish state? Do we even have a common identity? Is it right to search for it and to attempt to shape it?

For some, it is enough that we all speak Hebrew. For others, that is not even the beginning of a common identity. To me, there is no such thing as a Jewish state without a clear and solid Jewish identity – not a religious identity, but a cultural identity.

I oppose religious legislation, instead preferring to allow our Jewish cultural common denominator to develop freely. While there is no Israeli law that requires new parents to circumcise their child according to Jewish law, the vast majority of Israelis still do so. It follows that we do not also need other religious legislation. Ultimately it is the community – not the state – that must decide on its religious character.

If the community chooses, it will have privately-owned public transportation within its parameters on Shabbat. If it chooses otherwise, the buses will not run. If the community chooses to open businesses on Shabbat, they will open. If not, they will remain closed. I trust the Jews, over 80 percent of who are deeply connected and committed to their Jewish identity. I also know that coercion will boomerang.

In short, I wish to emphasize and empower our Jewish identity by removing the fear and coercion, allowing the public’s true will to emerge as the guiding force behind our Jewish national identity.


Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/columns/moshe-feiglin/identity-meaning-and-liberty/2012/09/05/0/?print

Disturbing Trends At Fox News

Greenfield-090712
“Fair and Balanced” is fast becoming more slogan than operating system at Fox News, and nowhere is this seen more clearly than in the way Israel is increasingly being treated and the extent to which anti-Semitism is tolerated as part of the cable channel’s conversation.

Here are a few examples:

● For some time, Fox has been using Michael Scheuer as a commentator. Bill O’Reilly is most responsible for this, but Judge Anthony Napolitano also made Scheuer a regular. This pompous “head of the Bin Laden Desk” at the CIA foams at the mouth whenever he can steer the conversation to Israel.

In his book Marching Toward Hell, Scheuer gives us that nasty bit of anti-Semitic trope that “the war in Iraq…was instigated by U.S. citizen Israel-firsters and their evangelical Christian allies.”

Read More:

http://www.jewishpress.com/indepth/opinions/disturbing-trends-at-fox-news/2012/09/05/0/?print